Maersk, CMA CGM speed giant Asia-NA pendulum

   After nearly two months on a 17-week rotation, the ocean carriers Maersk Line and CMA CGM have increased the speed of their joint weekly TP3/TP9/Columbus pendulum service between Asia and the east and west coasts of North America. 
   Roundtrip voyage time on the loop has decreased from 119 days to 112 days, or 16 weeks, and transit times westbound from the U.S. East Coast to Malaysia, China and South Korea have improved by about seven days as vessels will no longer slow steam one extra week between Savannah,Ga., and Maersk’s Southeast Asian hub at Tanjung Pelepas, Malaysia. 
   American Shipper reported Dec. 17 that the loop had slowed from a 16-week roundtrip voyage time to a 17-week roundtrip voyage. The service currently operates with eight CMA CGM vessels and eight from Maersk, averaging 8,399 TEUs each. 
   The rotation of the TP3/TP9/Columbus remains Seattle, Vancouver, Yokohama, Shanghai, Ningbo, Hong Kong, Yantian, Tanjung Pelepas, New York, Norfolk, Savannah, Tanjung Pelepas, Hong Kong, Yantian, Shanghai, Busan and Seattle. 
   The result of this decrease in roundtrip voyage time is that transit times will no longer be weighted quite so heavily in favor of U.S. import legs and against exports. Westbound between Savannah and Tanjung Pelepas the transit time is now 30 days, compared to a previous super-slow 38 days. The eastbound Tanjung Pelepas-New York transit remains only 22 days, and between Vancouver and Yokohama the westbound transit is 13 days, compared to the 10-day transit between Busan and Seattle eastbound. – BlueWater Reporting, Ben Meyer